Driver testing US v. UK Thinking of training makes me realise how many differences there are between the US and the UK. UK PSV (Passenger Service Vehicle) driver training was much more centred around the driving experience that the potential driver is going to give his passengers. In the US, a trainee driver has to spend fourteen and half hours in the classroom learning all the rules and regulations, then pass a test before he can start on-the-road training. I now have a manual some three inches thick of rules & regs that I have to work through with these trainees. I realise that UK drivers now have a CPC (Certificate of Professional Competency) that they have to obtain. Since it is not applicable to me I'm not sure how much relevance the CPC has to safety, although talk amongst coach and bus drivers suggests it is a somewhat watered down In addition, school bus drivers (and possibly even regular bus drivers) have to pass an agility test every two years. This involves safety related tasks such as dragging 125lbs the length of the bus in 30 secs, lifting 56lbs from chest height to ground and back up again, being able to evacuate from the bus by means other than the regular front entrance. This is something that has never even been suggested in the UK. I can see the merits of this type of testing, but I suspect that it exists more as a 'cover my back' reaction by the legislators. I cannot think of a single instance where these sort of actions have been required of me in 38 years of service. On-the-road training MUST be a minimum of 20 hours, so when I came here with my experience I still had to do the 20 hrs. With a trainer charging $20 per hour that's a lot of money for a company - was I a better DRIVER after it, probably not, so that was money wasted as the trainer and I wasted fuel and time logging up the required hours. We have to have six and half hours refresher training every 24 months, and we have to attend regular First Aid and CPR classes, all of which makes sense to me. It's very easy after 30 - 40 years on the job to think you have experienced it all, but there is always something new just around the corner waiting to catch you out!!! So, is the US better than the UK, the UK better than the US, or is there something to be taken from both sides.